Feeling ‘humiliated’, want to quit after polls, Shahabuddin tells Reuters

President Mohammed Shahabuddin has said he intends to step down after the February parliamentary election, halfway through his term, claiming he has been repeatedly humiliated and marginalised by the interim government led by Professor Muhammad Yunus.

Speaking to Reuters via WhatsApp from Bangabhaban on Thursday, Shahabuddin, 75, said this was his first media interview since taking office in 2023.

“I am keen to leave. I am interested to go out,” he said. “Until elections are held, I should continue. I am upholding my position because of the constitutionally held presidency,” he said.

Shahabuddin, elected unopposed as the Awami League nominee last year, became the country’s last remaining constitutional authority after the student-led uprising in August 2024 forced former prime minister Sheikh Hasina to flee to New Delhi and parliament was dissolved. 

Although the presidency is largely ceremonial, his role became symbolically significant during the political upheaval.

‘My voice has been stifled’

Shahabuddin alleged that over the past seven months, he had been deliberately sidelined: the interim government had stopped meeting him, his press wing was removed, and his official portraits were taken down overnight from embassies, high commissions and consulates worldwide.

“There was the portrait of the president in all consulates, embassies and high commissions, and this has been eliminated suddenly in one night,” he said. “A wrong message goes to the people that perhaps the president is going to be eliminated. I felt very much humiliated.”

Shahabuddin said he wrote to Professor Yunus requesting an explanation for the removal of the portraits, but received no response. “My voice has been stifled,” he said.

Yunus’ press advisers did not immediately comment.

Regular contact with army chief

Shahabuddin said he maintains regular communication with Army Chief General Waker-uz-Zaman, whose troops remained neutral during the violent protests that toppled Hasina last year.

He said the army chief had reassured him he had “no intention of grabbing power”. 

Bangladesh has a history of periods of military rule, but General Waker has previously emphasised his commitment to restoring democracy.

Although some student groups had initially demanded his resignation during the uprising, Shahabuddin said no political party had since asked him to leave office.

Opinion polls indicate the BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami, partners in a former coalition government, are leading contenders in the February election.

Asked whether Hasina had contacted him after fleeing the country, Shahabuddin declined to answer, saying only that he had acted independently since assuming the presidency and was no longer affiliated with any political party.